I. What is Evaluation?
The purpose of this web-page is to provide step-by-step information about how to plan and implement useful, low-cost, user-friendly evaluations of substance abuse prevention programs based on the risk and protective factors model. This site is designed to provide basic information about program evaluation and how to make program evaluation an integral part of your prevention program. The site is designed for use by program planners, managers, and practitioners, and does not assume that the user has training in research or evaluation methods. We strongly recommend planning your program's evaluation at the same time you start to plan your program. Evaluation planning often helps to support program planning and development, especially when using the logic model approach that we recommend. In developing this web-site, we take the position that evaluation should help to inform and improve programs as they develop, and not focus only on whether the programs "worked" or "didn't work." We define evaluation as: systematic efforts to collect and use program information for multiple purposes.
There are many different ways to conduct evaluations, and professional evaluators tend to agree that there is no "one best way" to do any evaluation. Instead, good evaluation requires carefully thinking through the questions that need to be answered, the type of program being evaluated, and the ways in which the information generated will be used. Good evaluation, in our view, should provide useful information about program functioning that can contribute to program improvement.
The information provided on this site will help guide you through some of the steps in conducting an evaluation. However, it is by no means a comprehensive treatment of the many different techniques used in program evaluation. The hope is to provide an evaluation tool that can help you make good decisions about the best kind of evaluation for your program, and to give you some examples of the kinds of information that you might need to collect. This guide is organized as follows:
First, we will walk you through the process of designing a logic model for your program. We strongly believe that a carefully developed, thoughtful logic model provides the best basis for planning an evaluation. Developing logic models can also be an important exercise for program planning and development.
Second, we will guide you through the process of using your program logic model as the basis for your evaluation plan: that is, for deciding what questions you'd like the evaluation to answer.
Third, we will show you how to use your logic model and evaluation plan as the basis for choosing appropriate evaluation methods and sources of information.
Fourth, we will help you learn how to analyze and present your information so that it can be useful to your program and other stakeholders.
Fifth, we will provide you some guidelines for how to manage and implement your evaluation plan.
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